Engine



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. D. LB R. DRESSER.

ENGINE.

Patented Apr. 12, 1898.

. N Y Q q m f N, W ,w k N mw* wl rw H lillMl: HLN. W .Q N u QN N y Il I N. y N N kw l E1 um I Q :IIN I" Alli N u BY ATTONEY (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

D. LE R. DRBSSBR.

ENGINE.

Patented Apr. l2, 1898.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

D. LE R. DRESSER. ENGINE.

No. 602,059. Patented Apr. 12, 1898.

A TTOHNEY UNITED ySini-Es i*PnrnNfr Frio-n.

DANIEL vROYD-RESSIEIR, OF FLUSHING, NEW YORK.

- ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 602,059, dated April 12, 1898.

Application filed May 1, 1893. Renewed September 20, 1897- vSerial No. 652,369. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANIEL LE ROY DRES.- SER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Flushing, Queens county, in the State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Engines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to rotary engines operated by steam, gas, or other fluid orvapor, and has for its objects to improve and sim-` plify the construction, to render the operation positive and direct in all cases, to insure a perfect balance, and otherwise increase the efficiency of the engine.

The main features of my engine include two or more pistons or setsof pistons projecting inward from two end disks carried loosely upon a common central shaft, said pistons working in and dividing an annular space formed by inner and outer circumscribing cylinders in connection with the end disks, arranged so that each piston or set of pistons shall be ,free to make a partial circumferential or rotary movement within the annular space at each admission of steam and be prevented from backward or reverse movement while the other piston or set of pistons makes a similar circumferential or rotary movement, certain valve and cut-off arrangements in which the movement of one piston or Y tion, whereon I have illustrated a preferred form of engine embodying my invention.

In said drawings, Figure l represents a longitudinal sectional elevation of the engine; Fig. 2, a transverse vertical section taken on the line 2 2; Fig. 3, a similar section taken on the line 3 3, and Fig. 4 a similar section taken on the line 4 4, all these sections being viewed in the direction indicated by their respective arrows in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a detail of a preferred form of friction or holding device for preventing backward movement of the pistons and also imparting forward movement to the shaft.

inder or casing A.

n Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in all the iigu'res.

A represents the outer cylinder or casing, having heads A A bolted thereto in the usual manner.

Bis the central shaft, passing through suitable stuffing-boxes in the cylinder-heads and journaled in Vstandards A2 A2, carried by the bed-plate Z of the engine. Upon the outer ends of the shaft B are mounted the usual iiywheel and belt-wheel.

Within the cylinder-heads collars C and D are keyed to the shaft B, these collars serving to communicate rotary motion to the shaft from the pistons, as will be hereinafter described.

I have shown two pairs or sets of pistons, but wish it to be understood that the principle of my invention may be carried out by the use of two single pistons'or that more than two pairs may be used with like effect. I, however, prefer the arrangement shown particularly in Fig. 2, where a pair of segmental pistons E E project inward from a disk E', which is mounted loosely upon the central shaft B, within the fixed collar C, already alluded to, this disk having a cylindricalexten- -sion e, surrounding the shaft and extending close up to the collar D, and also a hub portion e', uponwhich is formed an annular ring c2, Awhich hub abuts against the collar C, the

arrangement being such that rotary motion may be imparted to the latter by means of the frictional devices to be hereinafter more fully explained. This construction insures the formation of a steam-space between the disk E and the ring e2, into which steam is led through a steam-inlet E2, situated at any convenient point of the circumference of the outercyl- I prefer to employ rotary valves G G and seat them one in each of the segmental pistons E, although it is apparent that these valves and their seats may, lif desired, be arranged within the disk E and not project into the pistons proper. As shown clearly in Fig. 2, thesevalves are hollow, with closed ends,and have two peripheral ,openin gs g g to coincide with ports g2 g3 in the pistons E, in which the valves are seated. These va-lves G G are to be considered as forming the steam-inlets for operating the pistons E and have devices in connection therewith IOO ` is brought into communication with ports 72,' 712 alternately, said ports being formed in the whereby they are automatically operated from the pistons, as will be presently explained.

Corresponding with the pistons E E just described is another pair of segmental pistons F F, carried by dis'k F', which is mounted loosely upon the cylindrical extension e of the disk E', and these pistons F project inward in the same manner and are adapted to l rotate in the same path as the pistons E. They are provided with rotary valves HH, similar to the valves in the other pistons save that they may have only one opening h,which pistons F, which aord seats -forsuch valves. These valves are to beconsidered as exhaustoutlets for the `steam and com municate with a space formed between the disk F' and the adjacent cylinder-head A', through which` head, as indicated by the 'dotted lines -in F-ig. 1, I prefer to 'lead the exhaust-pipe F2..

The disk F has formed upon its inner face,

at or near its rim, a projecting annular flange i f, or, as I term it, a circumscribing 'cylinder, which extends past and substantially incloses the disk E'and pistons E. A double tappet I is fastened to `the outer edge `of this circumscribing cylinder f, so as to rotate therewith and with disk F', and, as shown in Fig. 3, has formed upon it eight shouldersf f2 fsf f5 f6f7 f8, adapted to strike against pins or projections g4 g5 formed on the outer ends vof the steam-inlet valves GG, `and thus rotate them to open and close communication between their openings g g' yand the ports g2 g3 of the pistons E at the proper times to eifec't 'the operation to be hereinafter de scribed.

The `exhaust-valves II II have each a pin or projection h3, projecting beyond the face of the disk F',and these pins are engaged by 1 tappetsJ and J', fixed upon a plate or disk 1 K, carried by the cylindrical extension e, vso i as to rotate therewith and with the disk E. Ballbearings are interposed between the plate K and the disk F, as in Fig. l, if found necessary. These tappets are each formed with shoulders j, j',.and j2, which strike alternately against the pinsh and thus rol tate the exhaust-valves H I-I and bring their ports into proper position with regard to the ports h or h2 for receiving or discharging steam, according to the relative positions of Z Zare friction-rollers working against f the inner surfaces of the rings and against'r inclined surfaces m m, and Z' Z' are similar rollers working between other inclined surfaces m' m' and the peripheries of the disks E and F', respectively, these inclined surfaces m and fm' being formed in the one case upon the face of the annular ring e2 of the disk E' and in the other case directly upon the outer face of the disk F', as indicated in Fig. 1.

In place of the frictional devices just described I may use pawl-and-ratchet arrangements or eccentricallymounted cams arranged so that the angle of their center line to the normal at the point of contact shall be less than the angle of friction, or other suitable devices -may be substituted by the eX- ercise of mechanical skill and judgment.

The operation of my `engine may be `described as fol-lows: Assuming the pistons E and F to be in the relative positions shown particularly in Fig. 2, the valvesG Gare then in position 'toadmit-steam, gas, 4or other fluid or vapor into the spaces s s between the two pairs of pistons, and this tends to force the pistons E away from the pistons F and causes the former to `make a rotary movement in the direction of the arrow until the dotted position is reached. The pistons F are meanwhile held from revolving in the opposite direction by the frictional devices Z m L', and the motion -of the `pistons E 'is communicated to the fixed collar `C and shaft B through those frictional devices Z' m' which are adjacent to said collar C. Upon the pistons E reaching 'their dotted positions the position of the valves GIG is reversed, which reversing operation has been effected by contact of the valve-pins g3 g3 and g4 g4 with the shoulders f' and f3 and f5 and f7, respectively, of the tappet f during the movement of the pistons E E, and these valves are now in position to admit 'steam into the spaces `s' s'. The admission -of steam at these points forces the pistons F F forward and causes them to travel in thesame direction as the preceding pistons E E and for a similar distance, the `last-named pistons being meanwhile held from backward movement by the frictional devices lm L, and the described forward movement of the pistons F F has been imparted to the coll-ar D and shaft B through the medium of those frictional devices m' which are adjacent to the collar D. At the end of the movement `of the pistons F F the position of the exhaustvalves I-I II will be 'found to have changed, the operation havingbeen effected by contact, in succession, against the valve-pins h3 of the shoulders jj' of therespective tappets J -J, moving with the `disk E' and cylindrical extension e, and the steam is thus allowed to exhaustthrough the ports 71271? of the pistons F F into the space between the disk F' and 'cylinder-head, and thence through the eX- haust-ppe F2.

It will be readily understood from the foregoing and from the drawings that the contnual` rotation or changing of position of the pistons E and F and their connections, as de- IOO IIO

tions during the operation of'the engine to effect a continuous supply and exhaust of steam, so that furtherdescription of the action of these parts will be unnecessary, and

especially as I do not limit myself to the valveandtappetv arrangements herein specified. The details of construction of these and other parts of my engine may be varied without departing from the principle or sacrilicing the advantages of my invention.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

l. In a rotary engine, the combination with an outer. cylinder, or casing, and a central shaft, oftwo pistons or sets of pistons, so arranged that each piston or set of pistons shall make a partial revolution or circumferential movement at each admission of steam and impart its motion to the shaft while the other piston, or set of pistons, is held from movement, and valves for controlling said pistons, the said valves being carried by the pistons, substantially as set forth.

2. In a rotary engine, the combination with an outer cylinder or casing, and a central shaft, of two pistons or sets of pistons adapted to move alternately, valves in connection with eac-h piston or set ofpistons, and means whereby the valves in one piston or set of pistons are operated by the movement of the other piston or set of pistons, substantially as set forth.

3. In a rotary engine, the combination with an outer cylinder or casing, and a central shaft, of two pistons or sets of pistons adapted to move alternately inv the same circumferential path, inlet-valves in connection with one piston or set of pistons, and` outlet or exhaust valves in connection with the other piston or set of pistons, and means for automatically operating said valves, substantially as set forth.

4. In a rotary engine, the combinationrwith an outer cylinder or casing having a steaminlet and a steam-outlet, and a central shaft, of vtwo disks carried by the shaft, pistons projecting from both of said disks toward each other and dividing an intervening annular space, valves automatically operated by the movement of said pistons, and two collars iixed upon the central shaft, lone adjacent to each of said disks, and adapted to receive rotary motion therefrom, substantially as set forth.

y 5. In a rotary engine, the combination with an outer cylinder or casing having a steaminlet and a steam-outlet, and a central shaft, of two disks carried by the shaft, pistons projecting from both of said disks toward each other, valves automatically operated by the movement of said pistons, two collars fixed upon the central shaft Ione adjacent to each of said disks, and means in connection with the casing, the disks and the collars, whereby and having a cylinder or sleeve loosely surt rounding said shaft, a disk also carrying pistons and valves and mounted loosely upon said cylinder or sleeve near its end and having an annular flange or rim extending to or beyond said first-named disk, said sleeve and said flange circumscribing the space in which the pistons rotate, and having devices, as tappets, for operating the valves, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed ymy name. to this speciiication in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.-

DANIEL LE ROY DRESSER.'

Witnesses:

ANTHONY GREF, Roer. A. KELLoND. 

